Reviews

This is the first album from Scottish singer songwriter Gary Miller; seven acoustic tracks with just Gary and his guitar. While you may not have heard of Gary Miller yet, this album certainly suggests that may change in the future.

Recorded by Neil McKenzie at Keep It Creative of Glasgow, this is a simple delight, eschewing the bells and whistles of production to concentrate on the strength of the songs. That strength is beautiful guitar work, a wonderfully strong vocal, and delightful lyrics. Gary's voice is reminiscent of fellow Scottish-born Colin Hay's solo work, full of character and like a smoky single malt for the ears, especially on The Long Way Home (For Kathleen).

There are some great tracks on show here. Maggie Drew is a little faster paced compared with most of the other songs, with vocals full of grit and gravel. A Mug's Game is a short gem of a song that leaves you wanting more. One Big Broken Heart is full of emotion, and is perhaps the strongest lyrically… "Maybe in time you'll know, we're all just different parts, of one big broken heart".

The stand out track though is the title track, The Waiting Day. It's different in tone to everything else, especially in vocal performance. Packed with feeling, this is a song to build an album around, and both demands and deserves attention.

Not every song hits home as it should. And So Much More does not fit in perfectly here, with a style that doesn't quite gel with the songs around it. Calm As Still Water is low key, but hauntingly beautiful, and gets the album back on track.

The Waiting Day is a strong statement of intent that deserves to be taken seriously. Full of warmth and gravitas, it may just be the perfect album to listen to on these cold winter nights.